Some things never change
by MythologyFreak
Summary: After her parents mysterious death, Hikari Morioko is determined to become a ninja. Life took pity on her and gave her something that she never would've ever dreamed of having. SasukexOC. Story starts from the beginning of the Naruto series.
1. A child is born

Chapter 1 – A child is born

At the stroke of midnight, a child was born. However she was tainted with a sickly disease.

Her parents thought of her to be the light of their lives, so they named her…Hikari. Light.

Years passed and she grew to be a fragile young girl.

She thrived to make older brother proud. So she became a ninja, following in their footsteps.

True, Hikari had many difficulties passing her exam at the ninja academy because of her illness. But she never gave in. No, she held out all the way through.

Her parents and brothers loved her, and they did everything to help her in any way possible. And for that, Hikari was grateful.

When Hikari hit 6, her parents died a mysterious death. She was too young to remember anything. To young to even understand death.

At age 10, Hikari passed the ninja academy exam, and became a Genin, and this is where the story starts….

Hikari's POV

I did it! I finally passed! Dan and Kanji will so proud! As soon as I was permeated to leave class, I sprinted home, fully ready to break the news to my brothers.

"Dan, Kanji!" I cried.

Dan appeared beside the doorway. "What is it Hikari?"

"I passed the exam!" I practically shouted.

"Looks like we'll be having a party tonight!" laughed Kanji as he too appeared in a puff of smoke next to Dan.

I smiled; I could always count on my brothers.

"Will you come to the ceremony tomorrow?" I asked.

"What do you think Hikari?" replied Dan. "We wouldn't miss it for the world."

"That's right!" "Now who's up for some ice-Cream?"

"Aha! I knew it was all about the ice- cream, you just want to eat it all, don't you Kanji?" I joked.

"What? Kanji pretended to be surprised at my comment. "No…of course not"

"It's Dan that's famous for pigging out on ice-cream."

"What?"

Kanji got out the bowls and scooped out the contents of the container.

"Of course, more for the graduating girl"

"And more for me too" he added in a gleeful whisper.

"I heard that Kanji" smirked Dan.

Kanji brought the bowls over to the table and we started eating.

"So" Dan began through a mouthful of ice-cream. "Ugh, chew and swallow Dan, have some manners". I told him, disgusted.

"Sorry, we're guys; it must be such a pain to live with us."

I rolled my eyes, "Tell me about it"

"Anyways, when are you going to be sorted into those three-man cells?"

"I dunno, after the ceremony I guess.

"Yeah, well just make sure you don't get stuck with some losers. I mean, guys around your age are such pigs". Kanji remarked.

"Look who's talking".

"What?"

"I mean, you're such a great student, I don't want someone to drag you down."

"Funny, that's exactly like something Sasuke would say.

"Who's Sasuke?" asked Dan

"Oh, some guy that all the girls are crazy over, I don't see what's so great about him."

"You sure you don't like him?"

I sighed, "Yes Kanji, I am positively sure I do not like Sasuke, now can we drop this subject?"

"You're the one who brought it up!"

"Yeah, well I'm ending it!"

At the ceremony:

"Hikari Morioko, please step forward".

This is it. I felt queasy walking to the stage, I looked around.

Surely enough, there was Dan and Kanji.

A surge of confident ran through me. I proudly walked to the stage and received my certificate.

My academy teacher said some things about me, bla bla bla…other stuff…

Finally it was over! I ran to my brothers who gave me a warm hug. Kanji even hoisted my up to his shoulders, something he hasn't done in a long time. I couldn't ask for more.

Day after ceremony:

I walked slowly through the doorway of the Academy's room. This is the last time I'll be in here, after this, I'll start my ninja journey.

I scanned the room for a seat as far away from Sasuke as I could get. The further away I am from Sasuke, the further away I am from his crazy fangirls. I spotted an empty table besides the window. Perfect.

I headed towards the open seat. Thump. Oh, sorry, I didn't see you there Sasuke.

"Hn." Is that all he says? He seemed like he wanted to say something else but I quickly made a beeline for the chair before anyone could take it. This time, I was extra careful not to make contact with anyone or anything…"

I sat in the seat closer to the window (there were 2 seats per table). Looking outside I didn't notice Sasuke standing behind me until he spoke. "Can I sit here?" he muttered.

"Hm?" "Sorry, could you repeat that?"

"Can I sit here?" Sasuke repeated, louder this time.

"Uhhh…sure." He sat down.

I looked behind him; there were fangirls of all kinds fuming at me.

"This is all your fault Bill-Board brow!"

What?!" I had nothing to do with this Ino Pig!"

"Hey, Sakura, don't you want to sit with me?" Naruto, the class clown asked.

"All right, listen up everyone!" Inquired Iruka Sensei. "There had been a small mistake in the graduation paperwork. It turns out that there had been 1 extra graduate that planned. So there will be a 4 man cell instead of 3 man cell.

I hope I don't get stuck in that one 4-man cell group.

Team 10: Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, Hinata Hyuuga.

Team 9: (don't know who's in this team, sorry)

Team 8: Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, Choji Akimichi.

Team 7: Naruto Uzimaki, Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, and Hikari Morioko.

Great, in stuck with an obsessed fan-girl, the human ice-cube Sasuke, and a blond-headed weirdo who I don't even know. I hate my life.


	2. Introduce Yourselves

Chapter 2 – The journey begins!

Before I start, I would like to say a special thank you to Slayspawn for reviewing.

Thanks again!

MythologyFreak101

"Where is Kakashi sensei?" Sakura screeched. "He's 3 hours late!"

Oh god, this can't get any worse. Poof. A cloud of white smoke appeared in from of us and a gray-hared man emerged. He looked about 20 or so. "Hi guys, sorry I'm late, I saw an old lady crossing the street and just had to help her across."

That is about the lamest excuse I have every heard.

Anyways, Hi. I'm Kakashi Hatake.

What in the world is he reading?

Let's start off by introducing yourselves.

"And how are we suppose to do that?" asked the blue-eyed blond.

I dunno, dreams, goals, whatever you want to say, say it.

Here, I'll start to give you an example.

Hi. I'm Kakashi Hatake, My dreams are none of your business and neither are my goals.

"Your turn Naruto."

That was a great intro, all we learned was him name. I looked at me teammates; they look about as weirder out as I was.

"We're waiting Naruto". So that was his name. Naruto. Hun…

"Oh…Yeah…Uhh….I'm Naruto Uzimaki, my dream is…to become the next Hokage!

Like that'll ever happen.

"And, uhh…I like ramen, like all kinda of ramen, ramen in a bowl, and I really like Ichikaru's ramen. They're best! And, that's about it…."

"I'm Sakura Haruno. "My dream is….*looks at Sasuke* and- and my goal is *looks at Sasuke again*

Kakashi sensei sighed. By the looks on his face, I could tell what he was thinking. Girls these days seem to be more interested in boys than in their actual ninja training.

"Next"

We all looked at Sasuke.

"I'm Sasuke Uchiha, My goal is to become the strongest ninja I can be, and to kill a certain someone".

Emo much?

"And our final team member"

"Oh. I'm Hikari Morioko, my goal is to become the strongest ninja I can be, to make my brothers proud.

"Who exactly are your brothers?" Kakashi sensei asked.

Why is he so curious? "Dan and Kanji Morioko".

"Ahh…Yes…, they are part of the ANBU Black Ops aren't they?

I nodded. "Yeah"

"So, moving on" Sensei began. "That does all for today, but tomorrow, meet me at the training grounds near the lake.

We're having a survival test.

What kind of "Survival test" is this gonna be sensei?" asked Sakura.

"You'll just have to wait and find out!"

"Oh. And one more thing. Don't eat breakfast. Trust me, you don't want to. "

Don't eat breakfast?

I turned and began to head home. But there was something that made me want to turn around.

"Hey Naruto" I called. "Come over here for a second".

Sorry for the interruption, but I just wanted to give you a quick description of what Hikari looks like (and maybe her brothers) Please skip this part If you want to keep your image of what Hikari looks like!

Hair: Silvery Blond, very light colored. It practically looks like strands of light!

Cloths: She wears a blue tank top and a white skirt (kind of like Sakura's in shippuuden)

Over it she has a tight overcoat (like Anko's only not as baggy and it slightly flares up from the waist down) that's blue with a white line embroidering the very edges.

Shoes: Regular ninja sandals that everyone wears.

Gloves: She wears white gloves cut at the top so her fingers poke through (it makes it easier for her to grab onto things)

Back to the story!

"Eh?" what is it?"

"I wanted to ask you something"

"Go on"

"Is it true that your posses the nine-tailed fox spirit?"

"So you heard about it too, yeah, I do." He muttered quietly. Suddenly I felt bad for him.

"You know what? You're about the dorkiest guy I've ever meet, but…I like you."

"People like you tend to work hard, so I respect you for that".

"HeHe!" he grinned.

Well, I can't wait I lied.

I turned around and headed home.

At our house:

"Helloooo? Anyone home?" I walked around the house in search for them. No sign.

I walked into the kitchen. On the table was a note written in Dan's neat script.

Out to buy groceries, Kanji ate all the food. Be back by 5:00PM.

Stay out of trouble.

- Dan

I couldn't help but laugh out loud at the note. He still treats me like a kid.

I went to my room and started to pack for tomorrow, I have nothing better to do.

I finished packing at 4:45PM so I still had about 15 minutes left before Dan and Kanji will be back.

I should train for tomorrow.

I didn't want to go anywhere far from our house so I found a nice tree in our backyard to practice shuriken throwing on.

I barley hit the tree the first time. Man, I need to practice.

After a few shots I got the hang of it. At my 8th attempt, I felt a sudden pain in my chest. Ugh. What's going on? I tried to move but the pain was too great. I started to fall.

Just when I though that I would hit the ground, a pair of hands caught me. I was rolled over and I caught a glimpse of Kanji's face…than everything went black.


	3. Survivle Test

Chapter 3 – The Survival Test

The next thing I knew, I was lying in a bed. I'm in the hospital, again. How long was I out this time? I quickly sat up. Too quick.

"Ack…" a thin trickle of blood slide down my chin. Wiping away the blood, I took note of my surroundings and tried to remember what had happened.

Well, I was training and I felt some sort of unknown pain inside of me, I guess the pain had knocked my out. I really must be pathetic. This had already happened so many times, I've lost count. And to make it even worse, I still feel it. All the other times I just leaves as soon as it knocks me out, but this time….

"So you're awake." I turned around. A medic walked into the room. Behind her was…Dan and Kanji!" The medic stood at the base of my bed and took careful note of my conditions. Dan and Kanji ran to my bedside.

"Hikari! Are you alright?" "Yes I'm fine Dan; would you quit worrying so much?"

"Sorry, we've just started over reacting a little". A little hun?

"Looks like you've gotten some other visitors, besides us of course" noted Kanji.

"We'll leave you alone now, and try not to move so much."

I frowned a little, they could be so overprotective sometimes, but I out to be grateful.

As soon as Dan and Kanji left, my other visitors were permitted inside.

"Oh my god! Hikari are you okay? We came as fast as we could! You just don't know how worried I was!" Naruto blabbered.

I smiled. "Oh don't worry about me, I'm fine, really."

Of course you are Hikari, who do you think you're fooling? I felt tears coming, I hated being always worried over, I hated always being in the hospital, why can't I just be a normal kid for once? I sound so selfish.

"So Hikari, what happened?" Asked Kakashi Sensei.

"Well, I was training and well.. I er…" I trailed off, how was I suppose to explain?

"Well? Keep going!" urged Naruto."

"Shut up loser, can't you see that she clearly doesn't want to talk about it?"

Did Sasuke really just say that?

"Yeah, you heard what Sasuke said Naruto. She doesn't to talk about it so stop bugging her!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, sheesh Sakura, I was just asking."

"Looks like you won't be moving for quite some time." Kakashi said.

"Actually, if you really want to know…this has happened so many times, I've lost count."

"Really?"

"Yeah, my brothers went through a lot of trouble to conceal my hospital records so the other kids at the academy would think I was some freak for being in the hospital so much. They wanted me to be treated the same as everyone else."

"It sounds like you've got some pretty nice siblings." I couldn't help smiling at Kakashi Sensei's comment.

"I'll recover within a few hours at the most."

"Are you sure that you'll be okay after that?"

"Yes sensei." "So can still go to the survival exercise tomorrow?"

"I guess, just don't ever do it."

"I won't"

"Alright then, best yet some rest, come on Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura".

"Coming sensei!"

Team 7 exited out the door. Sasuke was the last to leave. He glanced back once before giving one of his famous "Hn's" and shut the door.

He must think I'm such a weakling, after all, I practically live in the hospital."

I sighed. Sensei is right, I should get some rest. I closed my eyes and leaned back.

As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was fast asleep.

When I awoke this time, the pain was completely gone. Now I can start my training again.

I got up out of bed and scrawled a note to the nurse, explaining how I felt a lot better was leaving.

I checked my watch, 6:15 am. Wow, it was early! But the earlier the better, I can still make it in time for the survival training. I tore off towards our house, I still need to get my backpack, it has all my stuff in it.

When I reached our house, it was empty again. I guess Dan and Kanji must still be on a mission. God, don't they ever get a break?

I took out the spare key from underneath a loose tile and unlocked the door.

I was just about to walk into my room when I remembered, my backpack was still outside!

I walking into the backyard and grabbed my bag. Off to the training grounds! Oh joy…

I met up with Sakura along the way, so we talked…And I found out some pretty interesting things about her that I never knew.

"So are you and Sasuke together?" Sakura questioned.

"What me? Oh no, we're just friends, I think…"

"Nothing going on then?"

"No…why?"

"Oh, just wondering…(Inner Sakura) Cha! I still have a chance at Sasuke!!!

We walked in silence for a while.

"So…do you like hate Naruto for some reason?"

"Yeah! I mean, he's sooo annoying and I know I like Sasuke so he should just give up on trying impressing me!"

"He can't be that bad". I felt bad for the poor guy. He deserves a break.

"Well, anyway, oh…here we are." Sasuke and Naruto were just arriving as well. They both looked pretty tired. Well waking up at 6:30 am does that to you.

"Hi Naruto, I Sasuke" I greeted.

"Hn…"

"Oh, hi Hikari!!!"

"So is Kakashi Sensei late again?" Sakura asked

"Looks like it…"

We all stood, sat, waited for almost 3 hours until finally! Kakashi sensei showed up.

"You're Late!!!" Naruto and Sakura shouted.

Kakashi - *sweatdrop, anime style!*

"Oh, sorry, a black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way around, sorry I'm late." He walked over to the logs and set a timer on the one in the middle.

"So let's get down to business, I'll set this timer for noon. Your goal is simple, to get these bells from me." He held out 3 (yes I know I put three) bells. "However, if you don't attack with the intention of killing me, than you'll never get the bells"

And if you don't succeed, then you'll be tied to these logs and watch me eat my lunch in front of you. "Aww…so that's why he told us not to eat lunch."

"But wait Sensei" Sakura began, there are only 3 bells, and 4 of us."

"Exactly, that means at least one of you will go without lunch."

"Now lets get started."

"3-2-1, go!" in a flash, all of us disappeared. Hiding is a key point of the ninja way.

"Hey! You!!!" What is Naruto doing up on that rock? He should be hiding!

"Fight me! Right here, right now!" Naruto you idiot, run while you can!

Kakashi reached into his back pouch, is he getting a ninja tool?

But wait, he took out a book! "Hey, what do you think you're doing? Why are you reading that book? Naruto cried.

"To find out what happens."

"Oh yeah? Well take this!" Naruto came at Kakashi with all the momentum he had, but it wasn't enough. He only dodged Naruto's attack with a hop; leaving Naruto's back faced toward him.

"Rule #1, never let an opponent get behind you." Kakashi said. He stuck out 2 fingers while closing the rest; he's making a hand sign! Oh Naruto, watch out!

"Ninja art, a thousand years of pain!" he stuck his hand….right up Naruto's butt!

=_= they're both buffoons.

Now's my chance to attack him! I threw the kunai knife at him. Only…he dodged it along with another one. Sasuke must have though he had dropped his guard too. But he didn't. I see why he's a Joinin now, such superior skills!

Now not only have I given away my location, he could trace my anywhere now!

So I got to keep moving around.

I darted through the trees for some time. Once I heard a high pitched scream, I guessed it must be Sakura, but I'm too far away from her to help, and it could very well be a trap!

Ugh…now I'm really tired, you're out of shape Hikari.

I stopped to rest for a while. Big mistake. Just was I got up and was about to start running again. Sensei came out of nowhere and landed right in front of me.

Not bad Hikari, but you're going to have to train harder if you're going to let me just sneak up on you like that.

I threw some kunai knives at me. I managed to dodge them all except for 1 which followed the other, and it caught me by surprise. "Don't be caught off guard Hikari!" Kakashi Sensei teased.

I tried to wrench the knife out, but 10 other pinned my arms and legs to the tree. Oh great, now I can't even move!

"See ya Hikari, good luck removing the kunai!" And he darted off. Arg!!! I can't believe I let my guard down like that! I'm loosing it!

It took me a while to remove all the kunai and I ripped up some of my cloak in the process. I looked at my watch. 12:01 pm. Darn it! I wasn't able to get a bell in time!

Better be heading back to the logs, I'll see what he'll do to us now…

When I got back, everyone was already there.

And they all looked pretty gloomy too, they must have not gotten any of the bells either.

Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, Hikari! None of you have managed to get a bell. Therefor, you fail!


	4. A second chance, i refuse to fail!

Chapter 4- A second chance, I refuse to fail!

"Naruto, you lack tremendous ninja skills, charging headfirst at your opponent is the last thing you want to do, if that was a real battle, you could've been killed!"

"Sakura, you were so worried about Sasuke that you ignored Naruto, who was right in front of you."

"Sasuke, you though you were all that, you though that the other 3 were so beneath you that they weren't even worth helping."

"And Hikari, You should never be caught off guard, for it could result to you sudden death. You must always be aware of your surroundings."

"But, I have decided. I won't send you back to the academy."

"Really? All I did was faint and fall over..." Sakura commented.

"Yay! I passed; see I told you I could do it!" Naruto hollered. And he started to cheer.

"That's right". Kakashi Sensei chuckled. "You don't fail this test, because you will be dropped from the program forever!"

Naruto stopped cheering, "What?" "You can't do that!"

"Yes I can, I'm your sensei after all." Kakashi replied coolly. He sighed.

"Alright, you know what? I'll give you another chance." "Here"

He handed us each a boxed lunch, except for Naruto. "What? That isn't fair!"

"It's what you get for trying to eat while you should be trying to get a bell." "And none of you can feed him either."

"Hey! Your sooo unfair!!!!" He started to yell at Kakashi sensei. "See ya soon," and he disappeared.

We all opened our boxed lunches and began to eat. Ever now and then, Naruto's stomach will start to growl and he would mutter something to his defense. I felt terrible, but I had to obey sensei's orders.

After the third time or so, Sasuke threw his lunch up into Naruto's face. "Here."

"What? Sasuke you can't do that!" Objected Sakura. "You heard what Kakashi sensei said!"

"Yeah, so what?" He retorted coldly. Just as he finished his sentence, a giant explosion appeared in front of the 4 of us. "Youuu!!!!!!!!" he began. He was fuming. Now, he's done it.

The dust around him was beginning to settle. I wonder what kind of punishment we'll get…

"Pass!" "Wait what? How did we just pass? Sasuke disobeyed the rules!" I asked.

"Shinobi who disobey the rules are dirt, but those who turn on their friends just because of some stupid rule, are lower than dirt." Sensei answered.

"Tomorrow, we will start our first mission! You home and rest, you'll need it."

"Alrighttt!!!!" Naruto screamed. "Now I'm officially a shinobi!!!!

"I can't wait to tell Iruka Sensei!"

"Come on, lets go home" I said. "I don't know about you, but I'm really tired.

"Yeah, me too". Sakura added

"Hn…"

"Hey! Will somebody untie me first?! I knew something like this would happen!! Helloooo? Somebody???!!!!


	5. Our first C ranked mission!

Chapter 5- Our first "C" ranked mission!

After we all passed Kakashi Sensei's Survival test, the rest of the mission we're a breeze. Well, mostly because they were all "D" ranked ones, which got Naruto really annoyed. With every mission came complaining from our #1 knuckle-head Ninja. And it got really annoying.

"Aww! Come on! Can't we get a better mission than just picking weeds and catching people's cats!?" I'm ready for some action!" "Naruto…" I began, But Sasuke cut me off.

"Save your breath Hikari, there's no way anyone can knock some sense through the thick skull of his."

"Hikari's right, give it a rest Naruto!" Sakura whined.

We were In the Hokage's office ready to receive yet another "D" raked mission.

"Naruto!" Iruka Sensei scolded, "You should know better!" We're only giving you these missions because the council doesn't feel like you Genins are ready for the real thing."

"Iruka…Let me explain to Naruto" The Hokage said. "Naruto, listen closely, It may seem that these missions are no big deal, they may even seem boring, but every one of them helps our village a great deal. Chunins and Jonins don't have time for things like this, that's why they are given to you, Genins."

"Still! Your looking at the future Hokage! I'm ready for anything!"

"Naruto!" Sakura said through gritted teeth.

"Naruto, if you really want a higher ranked mission, than I guess I can give you this one."

"It's a body guarding mission. You will be given the task of body guards for an important person from the Land of Waves." "So are you up for it then?" the old man asked.

"You bet!" the blond exclaimed.

"Alright, bring in the bridge builder."

The knob on the door turned, and an old man leaned against the doorway. He had a bottle of Sake (Japanese wine) in one hand, and he kinda looked drunk.

"What! Why do we have to we body guards for him! I though we were guarding some pretty princess, not some old man!"

The man took another swing from his bottle, "Who's the shorty with the stupid look on his face?"

"Eh? What shorty?" Naruto spun his head around rapidly before realizing that the man was talking about him.

"This is Tazuna, a bridge builder from the Land of Waves." "From this moment on, his life is in your hands".

-At the entrance gate of the Leaf village-

"Wow!" I can't believe it! I gasped. I've never been outside the gates of the village."

"Tazuna, This is Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Hikari. And I am Kakashi Hatake.

"So your telling me that my life is in the hands of this squirt?" Tazuna asked.

"Don't worry" reassured Kakashi, "they are under my care, and I'm, a Jonin, and elite ninja."

Well, off we go!"

I could hardly contain my excitement. Dan and Kanji always told me about the mission they got, and how the world outside of the village would be hard. Now I can go home and tell them about how I got to go outside the village!

We headed north, and began walking. After a few hours, it started to get boring. I was about to ask Kakashi sensei how much longer before we would reach the Land of Waves when I saw a rain puddle on the ground. Strange, it hasn't rained in weeks, so why would there be water on the ground?

"Kasashi Sensei…"

"I know I saw it too" he muttered. "Just pretend you didn't see it."

"Okay…"

We continued to walk in silence, but not for long.

From the shadows of the trees nearby, came a dozen kunai knives, all aiming for Tazuna.

"Looks like we've got company!" Sasuke shouted.

Sensei immediately began to give orders, "Sakura, Hikari! Guard Tazuna! Hurry!" "Sasuke, Naruto! Help me fight them off!"

We ran to the bridge builder, Sakura in the back, me in the front. I pulled out a kunai. There was a rustle in the bush behind Sakura and a ninja appeared.

"Sakura, watch out! I cried. She whirled around and narrowly managed to dodge a blow from his weapon.

I caught a glimpse of his headband. Rain ninja.

The ninja turned around and aimed for the open space from behind Tazuna. Now with Sakura out of the way, it left an open space for attack!

"No!" I dove between the ninja and Tazuna. I blocked his attack with the kunai I had. Grabbing some shuriken from my pouch, I quickly shot them at the ninja. *Clang*

No, substitution! Come on, think! Where would he attack next? My eyes widened at my sudden realization.

The front! I left the front of Tazuna unguarded!

"Shadow Clone Jutsu! I couldn't make nearly as much as Naruto, but hopefully, they would delay the ninja long enough for me to think of a plan!

I racked my mind, think Hikari think! If I were an enemy ninja, how would I attack?

Of course! He's only trying to distract me! His only motive is to get Tazuna, something I can't let him do.

"Sakura! Guard Tazuna with your life!" I cried, "I'm counting on you!"

My shadow clones were already gone, no matter, I've already wasted enough chakra.

I closed my eyes and focused all my energy on pinpointing the location of the enemy.

There! I thrust my arms forward quickly shot them behind me. There was a faint grunt. I smiled. Bulls – Eye. 2 down. But how much more to go?

Lost in though, I didn't notice that another Rain ninja creeping up behind me. In a flash, there was a kunai at my throat. "Give up the bridge builder, or the girl dies, right here."

"Hikari!" Naruto shouted.

"Let go of her you scoundrel, of you'll have to deal with me." "On second though, you'll have to deal with me either way.

Sasuke jumped onto the ninja holding me captive and hit him on the side of his head. *Bam!* Down he goes.

"Sasuke! Behind you!" This time, 2 ninja came at him with full force, but Sasuke had lived up to his family name. He jumped up, (causing the ninja to crash into each other), and landed on their heads. In a swift movement, he bashed their head together, and the last 2 ninja went down. Sasuke to the rescue.

He jumped and landed in front of me. "Are you okay?"

I touched my throat where the kunai knife had been, I was so close to death. If it hadn't been for Sasuke…

I nodded.

"Hn…be more careful the next time"

"Hikari!!!! Sakura!!!" I turned around to find Naruto running in our direction. Kakashi sensei was close behind.

"Are you guys alright, sorry I couldn't come and help you, I was holding off the other ninja."

"Its okay, Sasuke came to our rescue!" Sakura gushed. Then she looked at Sasuke with much admiration.

"That's quite a boy you've got there Kakashi."

"Well, he is from the great Uchiha clan Tazuna, I wouldn't expect less."

Tazuna! I had completely forgotten about him! Thankfully he wasn't hurt.

"We've wasted enough time here already, let's go…"

"Yeah! I want to do something this time!" Naruto complained, "Sasuke got all the glory!!!"

We resumed our walking, "Come on Naruto our work here is finished."

"Uh…Yeah! I'm coming!"


	6. The land of Waves

Quick Note: The text in Italics is Hikari thinking to herself. Sorry I didn't do that before.

Chapter 6 – The Land of Waves

It took a while, but we finally caught sight of Land of Waves. It wasn't much, just a bunch of houses on a small island surrounded by the sea.

_Now we were in a small, cramped boat headed towards the port, the only way into the town._

"So Tazuna, you have something to tell us?" Kakashi sensei asked.

"I…er…alright! I'll tell you… " The man began.

The truth is, our land became very poor after this greedy business man, Gato took over. No one knows where he came from, he just appeared promising us many riches, and I'm sad to say. But all of the townsfolk had fallen for his trick. He began bankrupting our town and so there wasn't enough money to pay for the trip back. I really didn't have any intention on deceiving you in any way! "He finished.

"However, do consider this! If I don't get a safe trip back, than my poor daughter and grandson may never see me again, I just hate to think of how their lives would be without me. They would grieve for days on end…" He trailed off.

Our faces fell,_ this has got to be the worst case scenario that could happen on this mission. _

"Well, we've got no choice but to continue escorting you" Kakashi said stiffly. "But there will a mention of this on our mission report."

"Yes, yes, do as you like." Tazuna muttered.

"Alright, this is as far as I can take you, I've already risked my life taking you this far. Who knows what'll happen is Gato catches us."

"Thanks for the ride, Have a safe journey back." Kakashi said, and with that, we walking turned and faced the danger of the mission before us.

"Man! This mist is so thick!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Shut up you idiot! Do you want them to catch us?" Sasuke retorted.

"Sorry, sorry!"

"Just shut up." Sasuke said coolly.

_There was a rustle in the bushes nearby._ "Stand back!" Naruto shouted as he threw a Kunai at the sound. _The rustling stopped, and it was dead silent._ "I wonder what it could be." Sakura asked seeming to be scared. We all walked into the bushes and saw a bunny, half scared to death, the Kunai knife inches away from its head._ Thank gods Naruto's aim was bad, or else he would've killed it!_ "Now look at what you've done Naruto!" Sakura bellowed. "You scared the poor thing to death!"

"Oh My God, I'm sorry little bunny." Naruto started rambling. He scooped up the rabbit and started hugging it, which wasn't exactly helping since he was squishing it. _Suddenly, it hit me. Why was there a white rabbit in the middle of the summer. Rabbit's only change the color of their fur to white during the winter. So that means that this rabbit was raised in a lab. But for what reason?_

"Stand back everybody, we've got a visitor." Kakashi said. "Sakura, guard Tazuna, the rest of you, time to fight for your lives."

_Alright, here's my chance to prove myself. I can't let my senses be distracted again. _

"Kakashi Hatake, the copy ninja, what a pleasure to meet you, again." Zabuza sneered. "Let's see how you would lose this time.

"If I remember correctly, I won last time, and I'm going to win again." Kakashi shot back.

The 2 pounced at each other as if their lives depended on it, which it probably did. All there left for us to do was to wait and see if other ninja came to attack us, or if Kakashi sensei needed help.

"Is that all you've got Zabuza? You certainly havn't changed the last time we've fought." Kakashi teased.

"Think again Kakashi!" Zabuza whirled around and shot a column of water at Kakashi sensei, enveloping him in a prison of water.

_Ninja Art, Water prison Jutsu, an attack that traps the user's opponent in a prison made of water, thus making the opponent unable to attack unless the prison is broken. _

_Oh man, he managed to even capture sensei! We don't stand a chance. _

_No Hikari! Think positive! Come on, think of a plan. You're opponent is an ex: Ninja from the Hidden Mist Village, what could possibly be his weakness? Think, come on Hikari think!_

_That's it! _

"Sasuke! Come here!" I cried. Sasuke's head whipped in my direction, "Working on it" he said through gritted teeth_. Now I've got to get to him_ _instead. I edged closer and closer with every step I toke, hoping that Zabuza wouldn't notice. _

_Oops, too bad, he noticed .I shot a few Kunai knives at him hoping to distract him, which proved to be pointless, since he was an S- ranked criminal. Crap, now what do I do? _

"_Hikari!" I turned around, Sasuke! Now the time. _

_I dropped a letter bomb and ran from the area toward Sasuke. I only had a brief moment to explain so I've got to tell him quick. _

"_Got it?" I asked. _

"_Yes." _

"_Here's goes…"_

_Sasuke threw a shuriken at Zabuza so that Zabuza would focus on him now. Oh gods, I hope Sasuke doesn't die!_

I dove behind Zabuza and into the hole my letter bomb created and quickly covered myself with dirt. I lowered my chakra flow so Zabuza wouldn't sense me here.

_Ew…was that a worm? _I waited a while under the soft, moist dirt.

"_Thunk" That's the signal! So it must mean Sasuke and Naruto managed to drive Zabuza right above me!_

I shot my hand up from under the thick layer of dirt and grabbed Zabuza's ankle._ At least I think it was his ankle, oh it better be. _

I twisted my body free and threw Zabuza down against the ground as hard as I can. For a few moments Zabuza lost control on all his senses, giving Kakashi sensei enough time to break free from the water prison.

I could only gaze in wonder as I watched Kakashi's swift movement was he copied every one of Zabuza's hand signs down the smallest detail. The rest is all up to Sensei.

"Zing!" 2 Sebon needles pierced through Zabuza's neck. He dropped to the ground, dead.

I looked located the source of the attack, from a boy, no older than us. He wore some type of strange mask.It kinda looked like the ANBU Black Ops' mask from our village._ Hun... So this must be their tracking assassins. _

The boy spoke, "I'm sorry for startling you, I have been tracking this ninja form quite some time, and now I will have the liberty of taking him down. You may leave the rest to me. " He jumped down from the limb of a tree he was on and threw Zabuza's arm around him neck. The ninja rose slowly on his feet and in a thin swirl of wind, he disappeared.


	7. Climbing trees isn't as easy as it looks

Chapter 7 – Climbing trees is not as easy as it seems…

(Sasuke is a bit OOC) So sorry Hikari gets superhuman strength as her Kekkei Genkai, I didn't mean to copy Tsunada, I actually really did have this idea before I even knew about Tsunade. Also her element of ability is water, if you ever watched Avatar, it's kinda like waterbending. Again, didn't mean to copy!

With Kakashi still healing, Tazuna offered for us to stay at his house until our Sensei was all rested again. We all reluctantly agreed, since we were still weary after the fight. He had a small little house in the center of the village surrounded my water (no surprises here). But it was a cute little place and it was easy for us to relax.

The next day after the whole Zabuza incident, we all decided that we should train harder, so we pestered Kakashi sensei to train us even though we were on a mission. He reluctantly agreed, and even in the condition he moved in, he was still able to train us.

"Listen up you 4, watch closely at what I do." Kakashi walked toward the nearest tree and placed one foot on its trunk. "Today's lesson is climbing trees."

All four of us started at him like he was crazy. _Firstly, A. How is climbing tree's going to help us? And 2. How in the world is he going to climb a tree with crutches…=_=. _

"And of course." Kakashi continued, "You aren't allowed to use your hands." Kakashi now put one crutch onto the tree trunk and started walking up the tree as if he was just walking regularly on solid ground. He walked until he finally was hanging upside down from the lowest branch.

"In this, lesson, the true objective is not to learn how to climb trees, but how to control and more importantly, maintain your chakra.

_Well that answers both questions. He's using his chakra to climb the tree._ "You can use your kunai as a marker; make a slash in the tree at where you stop so you know where you got to last time."

"Also, a little tip, since you guys are beginners, you might want to start by running up the tree to get momentum, and then start to actually use your chakra." He added. "Now, get started!"

_Alright Hikari, run up the tree first to gather momentum, then use my chakra. No problem. Easy. _

_Okay, so maybe that was an understatement._ My first try was basically just horrible, I barley went 4 feet without falling back down. After a while, I started getting the hang of it and in no time, I reached the 1st branch.

I don't know how Sakura does it, but in her 1st try, she got as far as I did on my 10th.

All in All, I wasn't that bad. I beat Naruto and Sasuke (which they weren't very happy about) but I was still way under Sakura.

"Well, would you look at that, the girls of this group managed to get much further than the guys. What a surprise. I though you guys would be a lot tougher. Guess not. Well, I'm off, got some business to do." Kakashi noted.

He shouldn't have said that, Naruto was practically foaming at the mouth, and if looks could kill. Sasuke's glare would've killed Kakashi in 2 seconds flat."

"I'm going to show him! Just watch me; I'm going to run all the way to the top by the end of this day! Believe it!" Naruto exclaimed.

Me and Sakura looked at each other and started giggling. We couldn't help ourselves. Just seeing the look on the guys so determined to beat us GIRLS was just hilarious.

This went on for a while until the boys finally swallowed their pride and came to ask us how it's done. Naruto went over to Sakura and Sasuke came over to me. (Sakura wasn't really happy about this).

"Hey, So Hikari…" Sasuke looked like he was going to die from embarrassment. "I've not iced that you're pretty good at this."

I looked down at my feet, "Um…Well…Sakura is a lot better. Maybe you should ask her."

"She would just start flirting with me if I did. It gets really annoying."

"Oh, I'm sure it does."

"Anyways, I was wondering…if…you could…well…."

"Yes" I urged.

"I…er…." He stammered.

I flashed him a grin, "Of course I'll help you!"

Sasuke's eyes widened. "How did you…"

"It's a girl thing."

"Hn…"

"Come on, I'll show you." I went over to the nearest tree and backed away a couple of steps. Then I ran as fast as my legs could carry me up the trunk. Just with my momentum, I managed to get 10 feet high. I began to focus all my chakra to my feet and continued running, careful to balance all my energy.

Within minutes, I got to the top. Wow, a new record, and I didn't even mess up in front of him!

I leaped back down.

"And that's how it's done!" I couldn't help but feel a bit proud of myself.

"As Kakashi sensei said, the key is being able to control your chakra smoothly, and to maintain the balance through the entire climb is even harder." I explained. " Try to focus all your chakra to your feet first. "

He did so with no problem.

I smiled, "Now the trick is, can you maintain it?"

"Now you try" I said.

Sasuke mimicked my starte position and raced up the tree. In a few seconds, he disappeared among the leaves.

I put my hand over my eyes to shade them against the sun and looked up. And there he was, at the top of the tree.

I beamed. He dissolved back into the forest of leaves and came back down with a soft thump.

"You did it!" I rushed to him and without thinking, I gave him a hug. Immediately, I remembered what I was going again and quickly back off.

My face was growing hotter but I willed myself to stop blushing and surprisingly, I felt cooler.

Sasuke on the other hand was as red as a tomatoe. I glanced around. Naruto's eyes bugged out and Sakura looked like she was going to skin me alive for hugging "Her" Sasuke. But at that moment, I didn't care.

"I'm sorry if I…."

"Hn…it's fine."

"Okay…"

"Let's go find " He said, still red in the face.

I nodded in agreement and waved over at the other two.

"Hey Naruto! Sakura! We're going to head back, come now if you want to go back too!" I called.

Then I ran after Sasuke.

When we arrived back at Tazuna's house, Kakashi was already there and dinner was cooking. My stomach rumbled. I was really hungry, and nothing works up and appetite than a hard days of training.

After dinner, Sasuke and I arranged to meet up back at the place where we trained for some more training. Naruto and Sakura wanted to came to. I bet Sakura didn't want me and Sasuke alone. I didn't mind, and I owed those two for spending so much time with Sasuke.

"Alright! Now that's I'm full, I'm sure to go to the top! Believe it!" Naruto hollered.

"Oh, we believe you alright." I muttered under my breath.

Sasuke and Sakura snickered. "What?" Naruto asked, clearly annoyed.

"Oh nothing, come on, we're got to hurry if you want to squeeze in some training before dark."

"Oh yeah! Well I'm going to train even after its dark! I've got to if I want to become the next Hokage!" Now Naruto's screams were echoing off the forest, which got a little creepy.

Within a few moments, the training grounds came closer to view. "Well, we've finally reached it!" I said cheerfully. "Now let's train!"

_Sasuke agreed to help me train since I didn't even know what my Kekkei Genkai (Bloodline Limit) was. I was a pretty lame excuse for a Kunoichi. So it's time to step it up a notch._

He didn't go easy on me. With every kunai thrown, his aim got better until I couldn't even find an opening to attack. That's where I got frustrated. I grabbed the nearby tree and ripped it clean out of the ground. _Woah, I didn't know I could do that! _I flung the tree at Sasuke who was too shocked to move. _Oh my gods! It's gonna hurt him! _

For some reason, my hand flew up and I gestured at the tree as if to call something inside of it to come to me. And boy did that something come. All the water inside of the tree got sucked out and it headed straight in palm, hovering in an ever-changing orb.

I stared at my hand in amazement. I never knew, well, actually, Dan and Kanji never told me anything about my past, only that my parents, Lady Natsuhi and my dad Satorou were really powerful ninja that died in the Great Ninja War to protect the village. I could hardly remember anything about them. And sadly, they never left me any family heirloom, until now. They did leave my something better than anything else, the Kekkei Genkai of the Moriko Clan. My new powers.


	8. Meeting in the woods

I looked up again and saw that the tree, now thin and withered, was easily smashed aside by Sasuke. He looked as if he had recovered from the temporary shock… and so had I.

I couldn't tell you how happy I was; finally I had something to prove that I was truly a ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village.

Sasuke came over. "How did you do that? I never knew you had such power!"

I laughed, "To be honest, neither did I, now can we try that again?"

He nodded solemnly, maybe because he was jealous…

Sasuke leaped onto a tree and used the leaves to cover his presence. He shot kunai here and there, hoping to catch me off guard.

I found out that I could turn my water to ice if I made it cold enough, and I could even make my own water, even if it hurt a bit. If I was in the desert and desperately in need of water, I could draw some out of myself. Enough to use, but not enough to dehydrate myself significantly, but it takes its toll.

I became slower with such lack of water. Not to mention it hurts to drain gallons of water out of someone when their still conscious.

Sasuke left at dusk, and Sakura decided to follow him. That left Naruto and I. We spared, making small talk in between strikes.

He was actually pretty good, especially at his shadow clone Jutsu. Soon, the night fell over us, and it was too dark to see our way back, so we decided to just sleep in the forest. I mean, that's what shinobi do all the time, right?

I found a semi-conferrable branch atop the highest tree, Naruto settled on the one below me. He said that he'll watch out for "danger". Yeah right. The only danger around here is if he falls off his branch and pummels to his death. I snickered at my own thoughts.

"What?" Naruto complained. "What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing, now get to sleep, we've got a big day ahead of us. Good-Night!"

"Night Hikari."

I woke up before Naruto did, no surprises here. And my amazing prediction was right; he was on the ground, probably fell off his branch on the middle of the night. Too bad I didn't hear him fall of else I would've caught him. Maybe…

There was a shuffling of feet. A girl appeared out of the light shining through the trees. Oh no, she stopped in front of Naruto! She doesn't look like a ninja. I decided to wait and watch her, just to see what she's doing so early in the morning. Of course, I will help Naruto if there is danger.

"Wake up. You'll catch a cold if you stay out here any longer." The girl had weird voice. She shook Naruto gently. Naruto's eyes snapped open.

"Wha…What's going on? Who are you?"

"Just a passerby, and you?" the girl replied.

Naruto gave her a cheesy grin. "I'm Naruto Uzimaki! I was just training with my friend. Believe it!"

The girl smiled. "What are you training so hard for?"

"To be the greatest Hokage! Then, everyone will respect me. What about you? You don't look like a ninja."

"I'm here to gather herbs, to help a friend of mine get better."

"Is he like your best friend?"

"Kind of, he's someone who's precious to me. Is there, someone who's precious to you?"

"I-…Yeah, I guess there is, my entire squad, they're my friends, and I'll protect them with my life."

"You know…" the girl said. "If there is someone who's truly precious to you, then, you will go thought anything to protect them, you will become genuinely strong."

His speech moved me. If I really love my brothers, then does that mean I will be strong too? Naruto seemed dazed too.

The girl got up and turned. "It was nice talking to you. And by the way, I'm a boy…" He walked away.

Naruto's eyes bugged out. He muttered something about the world being full of surprises. The stranger was kind of weird. I threw down a kunai. "Let's go Naruto."

We headed back to Tazuna's house. Along the way, we meet up with Sasuke. He told us that Kakashi asked for us, we were to accompany Tazuna to the bridge in case there was any trouble.


	9. Battle on the Bridge

I don't own Naruto (even though i wish i do...) But i do own Hikari!

Chapter 9 – Battle on the bridge.

Kakashi decided to accompany is to the bridge. It was a rainy day. Normally rain will chill the air and make the day seem uncomfortable, but I like it. Rain makes me happy.

We got to the bridge. My heart practically stopped. Lying there were all the workers, on the verge of dying. I started to run towards them, but Kakashi motioned for me to stop. "Wait Hikari, you don't know if the enemy is still here or not."

There was a sinister laugh, one that turned the rainy day colder. "Hehaha, Well, Well. Look who decided to show up." I knew that voice to well to feel at ease. Zabuza.

"You might've gotten to me the last time, but it won't be so easy now that I've got Haku with me." The boy with the mask stepped out from behind him.

Everyone, except Kakashi stared in shock. Obviously betrayal wasn't so surprising to a Jonin.

"Haku, I'll let you have a chance with the boy. Keep him busy." Zabuza growled.

"Understood." The boy's voice sounded too soft.

Sasuke stepped forward. "This battle is mine." He said. I could only watched in amazement. He reaching to his weapons holster and pulled out a few kunai.

Then, they began to fight. The boy had much skill. And he's only slightly older than us. As they fought, rain stopped and the fog seemed to grow thicker every minute. Suddenly, Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi sensei. "Let's pick up what we've left off last time." He chuckled.

"I would be my pleasure, to beat you for the 3rd time in a row, Zabuza." Kakashi retorted. "Hikari, I'm leaving you in charge!"

Then the old rivals started battling also. That left Sakura, Naruto and me. We had no choice but to guard Tazuna.

"Keep close everyone, if we ever get separated, neither of us will stand a chance" I warned.

"Got it! Naruto answered back.

"Understood." Sakura said.

We stood for a while. I didn't dare drop my guard the entire time. The fog grew thicker. It became harder and harder to see my comrades. Now I was getting impatient. It didn't really take that long for a fight to end does it?

The mist clung to my skin. I felt as hopeless as ever. I called to Naruto and Sakura, making sure nothing happened to them. They answered back sounding fine.

Come on Hikari! Think! I can't just stand here! I got a new power and I am not just about to waste a chance to use it…That's it!

Slowly, I began drawing chakra. I didn't want anyone, not even my comrades to detect what I was doing. Naruto has a big mouth, he'll probably scream out and try to attack me before realizing it's actually me….=_=

As soon as I had enough, I first started experimenting by making all the water on my skin flow to my hand. It worked. Now to get down to business.

For the next 15 minutes, I continued gaining water from every possible source I could, mostly the mist in the air. Now it didn't seem like I was half blind. Sakura seemed to notice now. She turned to me and opened her mouth to say something, but I cut her off by pressing a finger to my lips. I hoped she got the message!

Even though I was easier to see, I still had to squint to see Sasuke and the masked ninja fighting. My eyes grew large in horror. Sasuke was trapped in his jutsu! Glass mirrors enveloped Sasuke everywhere, and I looked like he couldn't escape.

"Naruto! Sakura! I'm going to help Sasuke! Stay where you are!" Naruto didn't say anything back!

I looked back at Sasuke and saw a glint of orange. That idiot! He left to join Sasuke in secret without telling me! I groaned inwardly.

If I left, then Sakura would be left fending off any other attacks by herself, and we didn't even know how powerful any other possible ninja were! Then again, If I stayed, than the boys would get themselves in even more trouble. Oh what do I do? Well, here's a risk I'm willing to take.

"Take care Sakura! I'm going in!"

"Be careful Hikari!" She called back.

I nodded. Chances are slim either way. I admit, I wanted to help Sasuke for reasons other than him just being my teammate. Ah…I'm not focusing!

I took a few leaps and landed outside of the collage of mirrors. They were so tightly pressed together; there was no way any ninja could escape. I waited to see how the ninja attacked. He/She moved with lightning speed. Normal eyes couldn't even trace their movements! I don't stand a chance. I eyed the mirrors closely. Wait…they aren't true mirrors, but ones made out of ice.

An idea flashed in my mind. What I did back there with Tazuna had payed off! I could drain the water from the mirrors, than the mirrors would disintegrate. "And they could escape!" I finished out load.

Bad idea…The masked ninja had noticed me. He/She stuck one hand out of the mirror and grabbed the scruff of my jacket. My face was inches away from his. I though for sure he would kill me. Instead he said in a cold voice. "I can't have you messing up my master's plans. Why don't you join your friends!"

He/She threw me into the igloo. I managed to land on my hand, and then flipped myself over. I can't risk injuring myself before the battle even begins!

"Hikari!" It was Sasuke's voice. I turned around.

"What are you doing here Hikari?" Naruto asked.

I narrowed my eyes. "No Naruto, the question is…What are you doing here, you were supposed to be guarding Tazuna!"

"Yeah, well…It got boring! So I decided to join my pal Sasuke here!"

I clenched my teeth. He's got nerve to talk to me like that!

"Alright, break it up you two; we've got more important matters than this."

He was right, but it's not like it's going to admit it. "Well what about you genius? Got any plans figured out yet?"

Sasuke looked at his feet sheepishly. "Well…No."

I stifled a laugh. He is so cute when he blushes. I shook my head to ride myself of the thoughts.

"Listen up you two, I've got a plan. The elements the boy uses are Water and Air. He combines him to make ice. I just recently got this new power of some sort. I can manipulate water. Which in this case is very useful; I can drain the water from his mirrors, leaving only air left. That's when you escape."

"What about you Hikari?" asked Sasuke.

I looked away. "We can't all escape. It's either you 2 escapes, or we'll all be trapped in here and eventually killed."

"We're not leaving you Hikari" Sasuke said in a low voice. "You're out comrade and we can't risk losing you."

"Kakashi won't forgive us if we leave you." He added when he saw both me and Naruto look at him awkwardly.

I sighed. I knew when I was beat. "Fine, fine, it's all or nothing now. So get ready."

"Right." They said in unison.


End file.
